Bush Names New Agriculture Secretary : Cabinet: Edward R. Madigan, a congressman from the Illinois Farm Belt, is chosen. He is regarded as a bipartisan consensus-builder.

President Bush on Friday announced his selection of Edward R. Madigan, a veteran Republican congressman from the Illinois Farm Belt, to be the new secretary of agriculture, completing a midterm reshuffling of his Cabinet.

Madigan, 55, a popular 19-year House member, was described by associates as a low-key political moderate adept at bipartisan consensus-building. If confirmed by the Senate, he will succeed Clayton K. Yeutter, who was elected Friday as chairman of the Republican National Committee.

Bush, introducing Madigan at a televised news conference, said that the congressman had distinguished himself as “an aggressive leader on all agricultural issues” while serving as the ranking Republican member of the House Agriculture Committee.

The appointment drew favorable responses from two of the biggest farm advocacy groups, the American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Farmers Union, both of which have worked with Madigan in the past.

“I’ve known him for a long time,” Bush said of his nominee. “I’ve known him as a friend, as a leader in our party and as a man who cares deeply about the farm policies of our government and the people from agricultural America.”

He said that the soft-spoken, lanky lawmaker “stands tall and . . . will cast a big shadow in the Oval Office as he considers America’s agricultural future.

“These aren’t easy times for the family farmer, but they are important times,” the President continued, referring to budget constraints that have reduced federal supports for farmers. “American farm families have not always enjoyed the prosperity they deserve. I believe that Ed Madigan is a man to go to work on these problems.”

Madigan, thanking Bush for his confidence, replied: “This will be a job that touches everyone in the country. . . . I will work hard for you and for these farmers.”

His appointment marked the latest in a series of Cabinet shuffles in recent weeks. Besides the agriculture post, Bush has named new secretaries of education and labor and appointed a new drug policy coordinator.

Madigan was the second Republican congressman from Illinois to be chosen for the Cabinet in the last six weeks. The first was Lynn Martin, secretary-designate of labor, who gave up her House seat last year in an unsuccessful Senate race against Sen. Paul Simon (D-Ill.).

Madigan campaigned aggressively for the Cabinet post, writing Bush two weeks ago about his interest in replacing Yeutter. He said that he did so after Republicans told him the President needed to improve his lines of communication to rural America as he neared running for reelection in 1992.

Madigan’s central Illinois district contains some of the richest farmland in the Midwest. Representing a largely prosperous area, he has been a staunch opponent of what he considers overgenerous farm bill provisions. He worked hard to ensure passage of the 1990 farm bill, which cut crop subsidies by 15% while giving farmers more flexibility in crop planting.

“As agriculture secretary, he will have a keen interest in ensuring that this legislation is implemented the way Congress wants it to be,” remarked Randy Russell, a prominent lobbyist and agriculture consultant.

Russell, who served as chief of staff to former Agriculture Secretary John Block during the early years of the Ronald Reagan Administration, called Madigan “a very thoughtful and astute politician who is good at building consensus. He works well with Democrats and will have good relations with Congress overall.”

A one-time top lieutenant to House Minority Leader Robert H. Michel (R--Ill.), Madigan ran for the assistant leader’s post two years ago when it was vacated by Dick Cheney upon his appointment as defense secretary. But Madigan, considered a member of the GOP old guard, was defeated by new-wave conservative Rep. Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) by a margin of two votes.

Michel said Friday that Madigan “has demonstrated a sympathetic knowledge of the problems of farmers and an informed understanding of complex government agriculture programs.”

House Speaker Thomas S. Foley applauded the appointment. “I have absolute confidence in his ability to discharge the responsibilities of the job,” he said.

Reflecting Madigan’s reputation for considering all points of view, Mike Dunn, a spokesman for the National Farmers Union, said that the nominee “always has been somebody who had an open door for us, who we’ve been able to talk to even though we’re not always on the same wavelength.”

Added Dave Lane of the Farm Bureau Federation: “Madigan is an excellent choice. He understands the nation’s farmers and ranchers.”

A successful businessman who once owned the principal taxicab company in Lincoln, Ill., Madigan has championed other issues in Congress. He was a key player in last year’s passage of clean-air legislation and placed environmental protection and food safety high among his priorities.

Daniel Weiss, director of the Sierra Club’s air quality program, described Madigan as “a thoughtful legislator who was relatively nimble in his ability to make deals and form alliances.”

Weiss termed him “relatively nonideological compared to other Republicans on the Energy and Commerce Committee,” which is one of the most active panels in the House.

Although Democrats control Congress, the independent journal Congressional Quarterly commented last year that Madigan “has had as much impact on public policy over the last decade as all but a few senior Democrats.”

Madigan’s confirmation could elevate a Californian, Rep. William E. Dannemeyer (R-Fullerton), to the post of ranking GOP member of the Energy and Commerce Committee’s health subcommittee.

Dannemeyer, a conservative lawmaker and strident critic of homosexual activists, has had frequent and bitter disagreements over federal AIDS policy with the subcommittee’s liberal chairman, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles).

Dannemeyer’s ascent is by no means assured. Any of three more senior representatives on the full committee could elect to challenge him for the position.

Nevertheless, the Human Rights Campaign Fund, a national lobbying organization for gay men and lesbians, called the possibility “tragic.”

Staff writer Robert W. Stewart contributed to this story.